Three jobs, one letter

Every query has three jobs: hook the reader with your story, situate the book in the market so they know who will buy it, and establish credibility so they trust you wrote it. The letter you've built covers all three. Now make it yours — rework the sentences in your own voice, move things around, cut what doesn't earn its place.

Length & format

Target 250–350 words. The pitch paragraph should run 150–200 words. The spec line and bio fill the rest. Over 400 words? Cut the pitch — agents read hundreds of queries a week and every unnecessary word is a reason to stop.

Business letter formatting: 12pt font, single-spaced, left-aligned, a blank line between paragraphs. If emailing, use your email client's default font and size.

The back-cover-blurb problem

The most common query failure is writing a pitch that's evocative but vague — the way a back-cover blurb is vague. A query needs the specific, strange, irreplaceable details of your story.

The second sentence could only describe one book. That's the goal.

Things to cut

• Themes and interpretations — don't say "this is a story about grief and resilience." Let the plot carry the theme.
• Rhetorical questions — "What would you do if everything you believed was a lie?" Cut it. Always.
• Complimenting the agent — "I know you have excellent taste" is not a personalisation. It's filler.
• Mega-bestseller comps — Harry Potter, Twilight, Gone Girl, The Hunger Games. Too broad to mean anything.
• Apologising — for your word count, your genre, your lack of credits. Don't.

Comp titles

Comps tell agents where your book sits in the market. Choose two or three published in the last three to five years — not classics, not debuts from 2015. They don't need to match your plot; they should match your tone, audience, and sensibility.

Specific is better: The Bone Shard Daughter by Andrea Stewart, not "epic fantasy novels." If you can't think of comps, spend an afternoon on recent acquisitions announcements in your genre — that's where agents are actively buying.

What to do next

• Read 50 archived queries on Query Shark before you send anything. Janet Reid's annotations are the best free query education available.
• Research agents on QueryTracker and Manuscript Wishlist. Build a targeted list — don't blast everyone.
• Polish your first ten pages as carefully as your query. Agents who request material read the pages immediately.
• Have someone else read the query for clarity, not encouragement. Ask them: does the story make sense? Do they want to read it?
• Make sure your full manuscript is complete and as good as you can make it before you send anything. A same-day full request is possible.